Red Faction 13 Years-Later Review

Introduction:

Thirteen years ago, the original Red Faction title was released, which is likely causing you to wonder why I am reviewing it. While I could explain the reason in a single sentence, I do not want this introduction to look too short.

Last year THQ declared bankruptcy, and part of those proceedings involved the selling of assets, including game franchises. Some of these franchises were still having games made, but others had seen their end. The Red Faction franchise fell into the latter category, but the new owner, Nordic Games, may change that. To help it decide, it will be releasing collections of the franchise for the PlayStation 3 and Windows PCs. As that will bring all of the games in the franchise into the realm of current gaming news, there may be new interest in the games, and therefore in reviews of the games. That is why I do these Years-Later reviews, so here is the first.

Red Faction is a first-person shooter that has you rise from being a miner on Mars to hero of the Red Faction. It uses the Geo-Mod engine that allows for real-time, arbitrary geometry modification, which translates to explosions that can cause realistic damage to structures and objects. This is among the earliest games with such unscripted destruction.

At the time it was released, Red Faction earned itself an M rating for violence, blood and gore. Now, I am not sure if its content would earn it that rating today, but that is its rating and I shall repeat my warning again, if such content is not suitable for you, this review likely is not either.

Thirteen years later, is Red Faction still a game to play, or should it be left in the past? Time to find out.